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Perot's Party Fails To Qualify For Ohio Primary

COLUMBUS — Ross Perot's attempts to organize disaffected voters into a unified force suffered a setback Tuesday when his Reform Party failed to qualify for Ohio's primary ballot.

State election officials said the Perot-backed party fell about 2,400 valid signatures short of the 33,463 needed to qualify as a political party in Ohio. Reform Party officials ruled out a court challenge.

The group moved into Ohio after qualifying for the 1996 ballot in California. The party also has submitted signatures in Maine, the third state with a 1995 filing deadline.

Reform Party organizers still have the option of collecting more signatures to qualify for the Nov. 5 presidential ballot in Ohio. However, observers say missing the March 19 primary hurts the Texas billionaire's credibility and effort to create a legitimate alternative to the Republican and Democratic Parties.

Perot has said he would skip next year's presidential primaries and field a candidate in November to be selected during a high-tech convention. But Russell Verney, national coordinator for Citizens to Establish a Reform Party, said the party wanted to appear on primary ballots so members could nominate candidates for local or statewide elections.